No, Please, You Can't!
by XxXMorganXxXLEAHXxX
Summary: Ani has come to the Leaf Village to see Tsunade,her relatives, when Naruto brings a boy with Amnesia to the Village.Both him and Ani declare they'll take care of the stranger if he can stay and a certain love developes between him and Ani.
1. Chapter 1

**No, Please! You Can't!**

**Chapter One  
**

"Tsunade!" Startled, the blonde woman looked up from her papers to see the young fourteen year old standing in front of her.

"Ani, what are you doing here?" she demanded and I grinned like an immature child.

"You said I could come visit when I wanted to and my parents at the Land of Tea are too busy to have me around. Can I stay? Are you going to send me back?" I put on my fake innocent, horrified face and she sighed, wanting to disappear.

"Ani, you came at a very bad time," she grumbled and I grinned even more.

"Is that a problem?"

"Yes." She sighed. "But I'm going to have to let you stay so it doesn't matter. Do you want to go visit Sakura with me? I was just going to check on her."

"Sure! I want to see Sakura. I haven't talked to her in like a few years."

"She's a Genin now and is working in the hospital."

"Really?! Awesome! Come on, we have to go see her!"

"Honestly, Ani, you're fourteen and you act less mature than Naruto."

"Naruto's amazing! Don't be mean to him!"

"Let's see you say that when you meet him again."

"How about Uchiha? How's he?" She didn't answer for a moment.

"Sasuke left the village for Orochimaru."

"Really! No!"

"I'm sorry, Ani, but he did." I sighed once, controlling my temper almost instantly.

"It's not your fault so don't apologize. Come on, let's see Sakura!" I pulled her across to where the hospital was.

"Oh, Lady Tsunade." I looked over at the pink haired girl and grinned.

"Sakura, do you recognize me?"

"Ani?"

"Yep! How are you?"

"Good. I finally go my uniform to work in the hospital. Isn't it awesome?"

"Yeah! It looks really good on you."

"Thanks. So what are you doing here?"

"My parents wanted me to visit Tsunade. In a way, I'm related to her. I think her great grandma's mother's son married my mom and yeah. I don't know any other way to say it."

"Is that so?" Tsunade had left us already.

"Yeah, but usually I don't visit her. If you haven't noticed I've only been here twice. Once because I knew she had come from this village and then now since she's the Hokage. Of course, for a while she was staying with me to help me train my Kekkei Genkai, but that's about it. I haven't seen her since last year."

"She was with you up until last year?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Naruto was the one who brought her here to us."

"She hasn't told me that. Of course, I just got here."

"Yeah. Come on, why don't you help me with a few of my patients."

"Alright!" I followed after her eagerly, though I ended up being bored the whole time as Sakura went and checked over forty or more people. Finally, we had a job to go scout the hospital for a little while.

"Whoa, all this lightning!" I said, "And there's not a drop of rain whatsoever."

"It's weird," Sakura added and I went over to the window with her to look out at the sky. Of course, as I did that, both of us came face to face with someone. Sakura screamed while I looked at the person, not quite sure who he was.

"Quiet Sakura! You're in a hospital you know!"

"You made me scream, Naruto, you idiot!"

"Naruto!" I whisper-shouted and he looked at me.

"Do I know you?"

"Don't you remember me? I came here two years ago, Naruto. Ani? Ring a bell?"

"Ani? I didn't think you'd come back. Well, luckily for me, I found you two on duty. I need you to check someone out for me."

"Who?" I asked before her.

"This fella right here!"

"What happened to him?!" Sakura cried, "It looks like Hyperthermia."

"What-? You mean you know this guy? That's a funny name," Naruto laughed and I hit my head.

"Why am I friends with you?" I grumbled.

"Naruto, it's a diagnosis- Ah never mind. Yeah, Hyperthermia, he's a guy I used to know," Sakura growled.

"Well, this will make this a lot easier for you then."

"Hey, Naruto! What are you doing?!" Sakura asked. "And Ani, are you serious?"

"Hey, we can't leave _Hyperthermia _on the ground to die!" I argued, holding the guy closer to me than I had before.

"Well, you two take care of him. I have an important mission to take care of!"

"Naruto-!" Sakura sighed and I situated the guy so he was on my back.

"Sakura, I'll take him and get him treated. You get Naruto back here," I said, frowning at how Naruto was handling this.

"Alright. You should hurry up, though."

"Yeah." I started down the hall in the same direction I had been heading and turned the corner soon. As I continued, I felt the guy moving and glanced behind me.

"W-where am I? Who are you?"

"You're awake. How are you feeling?" He didn't answer. "What's your name?"

"I don't know," he answered after a few minutes and I looked at him sharply.

"You don't remember?" He shook his head.

"I don't remember."

"That's alright," I answered. "We'll figure it out, okay?" He nodded and I assumed he was asleep again. I knocked on a door and a doctor answered.

"What happened to him?"

"I don't really know. Sakura Haruno assumes he has Hyperthermia and when he spoke to me a few minutes ago, he couldn't remember his own name. I think he might have-"

"Amnesia. Right." I nodded. "Place him down on this bed. I'll see if I can wake him up again. Can you please step out of the room? If you'd like to watch, watch from that glass panel."

"Got it." I stepped out after laying him on the bed and a few moments later, Sakura and Naruto came in right after they woke him up.

"How's he doing?" Sakura asked and I shook my head.

"We think he has Amnesia." They started 'Back to the Past' Jutsu. It didn't work for him and so after a little bit, they ended the session.

"Ani, will you take him to his room. I need to talk to Naruto," Sakura said and I nodded.

"No, Ani, don't leave me alone with her!" I laughed as Sakura pulled him away and wheel chaired the guy upstairs to his room. He had fallen asleep again. Once I had him laid down and had the covers situated around him, I left the room not stopping to look at him and found Sakura sitting in Lady Tsunade's office, talking to Naruto. I came in as she was telling him about his release form.

"I just hope I don't regret doing a good deed."

(Later that Night at the Hospital)

"It's alright! Just stay calm and keep walking!" Sakura called.

"I'm going to go check inside again for anyone," I said and she nodded.

"Alright, you do that. I'll be there in a moment." I went inside and started looking around, calling for anyone who might be in there. When I didn't get a reply at all, I left and found Tsunade waiting for Sakura and I.

"I didn't find anyone, Tsunade," I said as I jogged up to her. Naruto ran up just as Sakura reported back as well.

"Did he get out of there?" That's when I realized he was missing.

"He's gone. He must still be in the hospital!"

"We have to get him," Naruto said, going for the hospital.

"You can't!" Sakura argued, "The fire's too big to let anyone else in."

"My baby!" We looked at the crying woman. "He didn't make it out."

"You mean, it's still inside there?" Tsunade asked, "Get that fire under control!"

"I have to go in there!"

"Ani, you of all people can't go in there! You're parents would kill me if anything happened to you!"

"It doesn't matter! Come on!"

"No-" We stopped arguing when we both heard the sound of a flute.

"Is that a flute?" I questioned aloud. It started to get louder when the window boards broke and I saw the guy coming out. I couldn't do anything, except watch as Naruto caught him.

"And look who he has!" Sakura squealed.

"Nice work!" Tsunade praised.

"Oh my baby!" the mother cried, taking the child from him. "Oh, thank, thank you very much!"

"Uh... you're welcome," he said and I couldn't for the moment get over how wonderful his voice was.

"Oh, I can't thank you enough."

"Good job!" I said, running and tackling the stranger with a hug. He hesitantly hugged me back and I wished for a moment I knew him.


	2. Chapter 2

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Two  
**

"A mystery stranger with Amnesia. Naruto, you sure got us in a mess," Tsunade sighed.

"I did as well, Tsunade," I answered. She glanced at me.

"Ani, you of all people sure do know how to get involved. And that reminds me-" I cried out in pain as she grabbed my ear. "You little liar! You're parents didn't send you here!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please let go! I won't be able to hear out of it by the time you're done." She did let go.

"Why hadn't you told me you're parents had been killed!?"

"Because I thought you might send me to their parent's house. They hate me and hit me when they're bored. I couldn't go there!" I saw everyone's startled expression.

"Ani, I just wish you would've told me."

"You aren't going to throw him out, right?" I asked.

"We can't take a stranger in," Shizune argued, "it's never been heard of to let a complete stranger wonder around the village."

"We can't throw him out! Would you throw me out?!"

"Ani, it's completely different."

"No! Come on! I mean my parents weren't even my real parents! What's the difference!"

"They weren't?" Shizune questioned, clearly surprised. "Then how-"

"She's not really related to me, Shizune," Tsunade interrupted, "Her real parents had disappeared a while ago and she could never find either of her parents. Some relatives ended up taking her in and I've treated her as a family member," Tsunade sighed and I nodded without saying anything. "To be truthfully honest, she is a complete stranger here." Shizune was completely startled. "Sakura," Tsunade said after a while.

"Yes, milady?" she asked.

"Does he remember anything yet?"

"No, nothing at all."

"Naruto are you planning on taking full responsibility for him? And Ani, are you?"

"Yes," we both answered.

"Lady Tsunade, you aren't-" Shizune started.

"Okay, fine, we'll let him stay."

"Awesome!" Naruto cried and I ran and hugged her.

"Thank you so much. Come on, Naruto! Let's take him around the village." Naruto nodded and we ran from the room, getting him. Naruto took us to a Ramen shop.

"Oh, I'm Naruto by the way," he said as we sat in there, the stranger in the middle.

"Oh, I'm-" He fell silent, looking uncomfortable.

"Naruto!" I scolded, "Think before you say things."

"Oh, uh, sorry. We should call you something until you remember what your name is," Naruto continued. "Let's see-"

"How about," I suggested, "we let him-"

"Oh, how about Menma!"

"M-Menma?" the guy questioned.

"Yeah, after the bamboo shoots I was picking when I found you."

"Menma?" the guy murmured. "I guess it's just as good as any name."

"Great! It's nice to meet you Menma!"

"It's nice to meet you too, Naruto," Menma replied and turned his attention to me. "What's your name?"

"I-I'm Ani," I answered, looking away when my face started heating up. What was wrong with me?

"Here you go."

"Thank you," I answered brightly, looking up at the man who served us.

"Oh, this looks delicious!" I looked over at Menma and grinned.

"It's the best ramen I've ever had," I added and he looked at me. "Try it."

"Alright." We all got some chop sticks and broke them apart. I started eating without a word while they said something I wasn't quite able to remember.

"This is delicious!" Naruto gushed.

"You haven't tasted anything yet." I looked up, swallowing what I had in my mouth. "Don't you notice there's something missing?" Naruto looked down at his bowl.

"There's no Menma pickled bamboo shoots."

"And there won't be for another couple weeks."

"Alright, but you aren't going to forget about it, right?"

"Of course not."

"Okay then. Menma, Ani, when that's done we'll all eat it together."

"That would be nice," Menma added and I looked at him, smiling.

"I totally agree."

#  
#

"Thanks Naruto for letting me stay over at your house," I said as I walked up the steps with him and Menma.

"It's not a problem."

"Are you sure it's alright?" Menma asked, "that I stay here?"

"Of course it is," Naruto said, "My home is your home." We walked in. "I know it's a little messy right now-"

"A little messy?" Menma asked and I agreed.

"It's not that bad. Don't be so picky," Naruto said, waving his hand.

"No, it's fine. Really," Menma said, changing what he had said.

"Do either of you mind sleeping in the floor?" Naruto asked and I shook my head.

"How many of those floor beds do you have?" He rubbed the back of his head.

"Only one."

"And I don't have mine since it got lost in the fire," I sighed, not minding the thought of might having to share with Menma. I actually liked the idea- I shook my head and smiled. "Menma, you can take the bed, alright?"

"It's not really fair," he began, "do you want to share?" I blushed, much to my surprise.

"It doesn't matter," I murmured, moving on my feet a little. "Naruto, where's the bathroom?"

"Over here..." He took me there and I went in, locking the door. I hit my head against the wall once.

"I can't like him," I murmured, "As soon as he remembers everything, he'll be gone. I just can't." I looked in the mirror at myself. My reddish/orange hair (not the yucky kind. A nice shade) wasn't even touching my shoulders and my eyes were orangish shade with a few freckles lining my cheeks (which were bright red at the time). "I need to get it together," I murmured and walked out of the room (after flushing the toilet and sink water) back to the other room. They had cleared a spot and put the bed down while I was in the bathroom and I saw Menma was already in some of Naruto's pajamas. I blushed again when I thought of how cute he was and tried to get the thought out of my head.

"Ani, do you have any pajamas?"

"Yeah, I managed to find a few and washed them."

"What happened?" Menma asked as he straightened the bed out a little more.

"Oh, it's nothing. A fire spread through part of the town, only to one or two of the houses in the Land of Tea, and my parents were killed in the fire. I only survived since I had been at the doctors when it happened."

"I see." He was looking down at the ground, not straightening the bed anymore and I got down beside him, finishing it. "Have you not liked fire since it happened?" I shook my head.

"Of course not. Why would I?"

"Just asking." I didn't answer him and stood up, going over to the one small bag I had with me. I pulled out my pajamas and went to the bathroom again. Once I was dressed in my outfit, I came back out. It was really dark outside now. I blushed as I remembered I would be sharing with Menma and soon we were laying down in the dark, Naruto talking in his sleep about.... guess what? Ramen of course. I rolled over and was facing Menma. He was still wide awake to.

"Menma, what's on your mind?" I sat up and he looked at me.

"Nothing. I'm just trying to remember something, anything really."

"Do you remember anything?"

"No." He sounded strained.

"You should rest."

"You should also."

"I'm not tired," I argued.

"And I can't get to sleep," he shot back, though it was friendly. He got up. "Are you going to go back to bed?"

"No."

"I'm going to clean up."

"I'll help." We both got up and I folded the bed up while Menma got dressed in the bathroom, though for the moment, I wished he was still in the short sleeve. Of course, I absolutely loved his outfit, especially the scarf. That was an amazing addition. As we cleaned, I accidentally said aloud, "Menma, I really like your hair."

"Do you?" I blushed when I realized I had said that.

"Yeah, it's a lot nicer than mine and I know plenty of girls who would die for hair like that." I cursed myself mentally. Why was I comparing his hair to girl's?

"Why don't you have your hair long?"

"I didn't have a choice. I was sick about five months before the fire and lost all my hair in the process. I recovered a month later and let it grow back." I brushed my hair behind my ear. Neither of us said anymore and I was grateful, working on cleaning until Naruto woke up that morning.


	3. Chapter 3

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Three**

"Good morning, Naruto." When Menma's voice broke my daydreaming, I couldn't believe how sexy it sounded (yes, that'll be like the only time I use that word in here. I don't use sexy often, but Menma's voice is sexy. Okay, three times, but that's it). I looked over at Naruto.

"Did you two do all this?" he murmured, still half asleep.

"Neither of us could sleep so we had time to kill." I thought dreamily about his voice until I heard Naruto.

"Menma! What the heck do you think you're doing?!" Naruto yelled. I looked over at Menma and Naruto and saw Naruto's underwear in Menma's hand.

"I'm just hanging the laundry."

"You don't wash someone else's underwear! Just leave it alone!"

"Okay," Menma answered, sounding a little confused and I laughed quietly to myself when the sound of a timer went off. I silently left the room and got the food I had prepared.

"Are either of you hungry?" They both looked over at me and I grinned when I saw both their expressions.

"Ani, it looks wonderful," Menma said, getting up and walking over to me. He beckoned for Naruto and then we all sat on the floor. I sat the tray in the middle and we ate in silence for a moment. "This is wonderful, Ani." I simply smiled at Menma, my mouth still full of food.

"Thanks," I said when I had swallowed the food and we talked a little for about five more minutes until everyone was done eating. Menma went to clear the dishes, but I took them.

"Ani, let me take care of these," Menma said.

"No, you're the guest. I'm going to." He went to argue, but saw it was pointless when I had my mind made up.

"Let me help," he insisted and I finally let him. I cleaned and rinsed the dishes while he dried and put them away and Naruto walked in fully dressed when we finished.

"Come on guys, we need to get Menma's memory back."

"One minute, I need to get dressed," I answered back, grabbing some clothing and getting into the bathroom. I changed into a white tang top and black skirt (since I wasn't technically a ninja I wore just girly outfits). I put a few pins in my hair to push it back a little and grabbed my ballet flats out of my bag and put them on while Naruto and Menma got on their shoes.

"Okay, so where should we start?" Naruto had us already walking around the village. "Oh, I have an idea!" He took us to some food shop. Then I understood; they had foods from the other villages there. I smiled. Naruto was good at this.

"These are Sand Dumplings from the land of wind. They're really good." I wasn't really paying attention; I was mostly looking at Menma's reflection as Naruto also explained the Stone Rice Cakes and Mist Mitsumani (? Wrong spelling? Tell me how to correct it if you know how to).

"Uh, Naruto?" I looked over at Menma as I heard his voice. "Thanks, but you shouldn't do this for me."

"Why?"

"My memory will come back when it wants; if it comes back." I had never thought of the possibility that it might not come back. "Besides, you must have work to do today."

"Well, I have to clean the mountainside images."

"Fine, then, I'll help you with that."

"I was going to help either way since Naruto is letting me stay with him," I said and they both nodded before I saw Menma's face change.

"One minute, I want to do something before we start that." I looked over at the old woman he stopped by. "Excuse me ma'am, may I help you carry those groceries home?"

"Oh, thank you."

"Menma," I said, walking up beside him, "let me help."

"Oh, okay." I took a bag and together we walked to the woman's house with her, Naruto trailing behind.

"Thank you so much," the woman said when we got to her house.

"I notice your garden has some weeds in it," Menma said.

"I just let the weeds grow where they will. Gardening is too hard on my back."

"We'll do it for you," I suggested before Menma.

"You will?" Menma and I both got down and started weeding as Naruto joined us. About an hour later, the weeds were all gone and I stood up, brushing my hands off and watched as Menma went to see if any others wanted help (though Naruto didn't notice since he was complaining about it still).

"Naruto, do you mind if we help these guys too?" I looked over at the group of elderly people and smiled.

(Later On)

"Menma, whoever you are, you certainly are a weird one." I looked over at Naruto sharply as we scrubbed the Mountainside images and glared at him.

"Am I?" Menma questioned.

"Naruto, he's not weird," I scolded and Menma looked at me.

"He just acts different from any of the other guys I know."

"I just want to live my life the right way. With no regrets, you know?"

"Did you remember something?" Naruto and I asked at the same time.

"Uh, no. Not really."

"Oh," Naruto said, sounding a little disappointed. I was grateful (_God I sound so selfish) _Menma didn't remember anything. "What is it now? Did a bird poop on me?" I saw his startled expression. "Huh?! Blood?" I looked up and saw the guy falling from the sky.

"Naruto, catch him!" I grabbed hold of Naruto before he could fall off with the guy.

"Help me up."

"Here!" I blushed deeply as Menma's arms wrapped around me, but ignored it and helped Naruto pull the guy up.

"There's... an enemy... in the village," he gasped out and then the Kunai came at us.

"Let's get out of here!" Naruto cried, throwing the guy on his shoulder and we all jumped out of the thing to the top of the rocks. "Menma, Ani, stay here and watch this guy, alright?"

"Of course," Menma answered for both of us and Naruto went after the enemy as he went into the forest. I started looking over the guy. "Ani, is everything alright? You're face is red."

"Everything's fine," I mumbled, glancing at him and then pulling out some wraps.

"I have to go after Naruto."

"I'll get this guy to the hospital. Hurry though and don't get injured."

"Don't worry about me, Ani. Just take care of yourself."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"Ani, guess what?!" I looked over at Naruto as he ran over to me. I looked back down real quick to finish signing the paper I was on and then looked over once more back at Naruto and I saw Menma had caught up.

"Okay, so what did you want?" I asked, leaning against the counter.

"Menma's flute melody is a Ninjutsu!" I gaped at Menma and a blush crept across his face.

"Really? That's awesome!" I grinned, though I knew that if he knew his flute was a Ninjutsu he'd begin remembering other things.

"Do you want to come with to talk to Grandma Tsunade about it?" My eyes flashed angrily to Naruto and I felt my Kekkei Genkai come out, but I smiled and nodded anyways.

"Of course I want to come! Come on, let's get moving."

My name is Ani. I don't remember my last name, but one of the only things I actually remember is my Kekkei Genkai. The Kekkei Genkai I have is the Rinnegan. I had reddish/orange hair that didn't quite touch my shoulders yet. I had lost it during a sickness that had happened five months before the fire that killed my adopted parents and I came to Tsunade (related to my adopted parents) to live in the Leaf Village. Naruto was my best friend and when I had come back to the Leaf Village, Naruto had brought in this guy with Amnesia. So to help him, Naruto and I agreed to be responsible with him until he remembered who he was. I, my stupid selfish self, accidently fell for this guy with Amnesia (who's named at the moment as Menma) and now I didn't want him to remember who he was so he wouldn't ever have to leave.

I shook my head to shake off the thoughts and put my Rinnegan away so no one would ask questions. "Tsunade!!! Open up, it's me!" Tsunade opened her door and I pulled Menma in with Naruto behind us. "MENMA'S FLUTE IS A NINJUTSU!!!!" I took a deep breath to calm myself and grinned (yet another fake one). And then I continued babbling on about it until Tsunade grabbed my ear and I cried out, telling her I was going to go deaf if she didn't let go.

"Okay, tell me this again and don't keep babbling about it, alright?!"

"Okay," I gasped out, leaning down so my ear didn't hurt as much as she held onto it. "Naruto, you tell her since I wasn't there," I answered, "Oh, and the village was infiltrated by someone, but he got away." She nodded and turned her attention to Naruto.

"Okay, so that person that infiltrated our village, I went after him and he was fast! I mean really fast and then I heard this thing and it was coming from Menma. It spiked up my Chakra and everything! It was completely amazing!" Tsunade nodded and closed her eyes after she had traveled over to her seat and had sat down.

"Menma," she said finally, looking at him, "I've heard of a Ninjutsu similar to yours." He gasped as did Naruto and I.

"Do you?" he asked.

"Yes, I do. The Jutsu originates in the Land of Rice Paddies if you remember that village at all."

"Please, I must go there," Menma said.

"You can't go there without a good reason," Shizune began, "It would seem-"

"We have a good reason," Naruto argued, "to find Menma's memory. I second the request."

"And the third the request," I answered so no one would know I was holding back. Tsunade looked at us all for a moment.

"Are you two sure on this?"

"Absolutely!" Naruto and I answered.

"Fine, I'll let you go." I grinned and stuck my tongue out at Shizune and giggled.

"Come on, let's get moving!" I said, grabbing hold of Menma's hand to take him along again and he followed without arguing, though I heard Tsunade ask Naruto to stay behind for a moment. I shrugged and let go of Menma's hand once we got outside.

"Where's Naruto?" he asked as he looked behind us.

"Tsunade wanted him to stay behind to talk to him, but he'll catch up."

(Naruto's Pov)

"What do you need, Grandma?" I asked once Ani and Menma had left.

"Naruto, how do you really know who this guy is?" She got right down to business.

"I trust this guy with me life. I know he's good."

"How do you? His Jutsu is similar to that of the ninja Shikamaru had faced during the Sasuke retrieval mission."

"So what?"

"What if he's working with Orochimaru-?"

"He wouldn't. I know he wouldn't."

"You don't know that!" I looked at her, finally, in defeat. She sighed. "Make sure not to tell Ani about this talk."

"Why?"

"Haven't you noticed? She likes Menma."

"We both do."

"Naruto, I mean more than that." I blinked. I hadn't realized that. I grinned.

"Really? That's funny, she seems eager to get rid of him."

"She's putting on an act. She doesn't want you or Menma to realize that she likes him. I know her better than that though."

"I won't tell her. As long as you agree that he's not an enemy." She sighed.

"Fine."

"Good, we're on the same page."

"I'm still going to send Tenten and Neji on this mission still." I glared at her.

"Fine."

(Ani's Pov)

"Hey, Menma..." He looked up at me as I stood over him with my flushed face.

"Yeah, Ani?" he asked, giving me a smile that made me almost forget to breath.

"I-I wanted to give you this before we left." I held out the amethyst necklace to him. "I wanted to give this to you so when you do go back home you won't ever forget me."

"Oh, Ani, I don't want to take this from you."

"Please? I mean, if you don't want it..."

"No, it's wonderful." He took it.

"You don't have to wear it," I murmured, folding my hands behind my back.

"I want to," he answered, slipping it over his head. I blushed, nodded and got my bags ready the rest of the way as Naruto walked in.

"So, are you guys ready?" Naruto asked and we both nodded. "Ani, are you feeling alright?"

"I feel fine," I answered and saw Menma beginning to look at me so I turned my head away. "Are you ready?"

"Not yet," he answered and got his stuff ready. "We're meeting Neji and Tenten at the Ramen shop in ten minutes."

"Why?" I asked, frowning.

"Grandma Tsunade just thought it would be a good idea."

"Oh." I glanced at Menma and saw he was looking at me and I quickly looked away at the ground, blushing. We headed out as soon as Naruto was ready and met the others at the Ramen shop as promised.

"We'll be back soon," Naruto told the Ramen shop owner.

"And we'll be going on with business as always."

"And we'll be able to have Menma pickled bamboo shoots when we get back."

"That's right."

"You won't forget about them, will you?"

"Of course not. Don't worry."

"Alright. Bye!" I headed after the others, keeping close to Menma as we started into the trees.


	5. Chapter 5

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Part Five**

"I hope you guys know that you didn't have to come along with us," Naruto said and I turned my attention away from Menma to look at Tenten and Neji.

"We weren't given a choice. We had to come it was an order from Lady Tsunade as a mission." I blinked; did Tsunade not trust Menma? And then I blushed. Did she know how I feel? "We have to capture that guy who infiltrated the village. That is our mission." I saw Neji's eyes narrow a few moments later and he went ahead of Menma. Tenten came up next to Naruto and me.

"You guys don't want to be left behind do you?" And then she went ahead as well.

"I'm going to go up ahead," Menma said as he looked at both of us and then also went.

"See ya, Naruto," I said and went after, watching how Menma moved. He almost seemed like a Shinobi as I watched him flip around through the branches. It made me feel like I was pretty useless as a Shinobi.

Neji's foot snapped the branch he was landing on and I gasped out just as Menma went after him, caught his arm, and then put him on a new branch. "That was close. Are you alright?" Menma said as I got next to him.

"Yes, thanks to you," Neji answered, "Let's take a break here."

"Okay," I answered and followed after Menma, though I made sure he didn't notice.

"Okay, spill it. What's up?" I heard Naruto ask as I walked near them and glanced up at Menma, seeing him with his eyes closed, basking his face in the sunlight. I stared at him with dreamy eyes until I heard Neji.

"I don't trust this guy. Earlier, when I fell, I was going at my full speed and the fall wasn't an accident either."

"What do you mean Neji?" I asked as I walked out from behind my spot.

"Oh... Rhia, we aren't talking about anything important," Naruto tried to lie.

"I'm not stupid. I've heard the beginning of the conversation. Why don't you trust Menma, Neji?"

"He could use his powers against us," Tenten input.

"I asked Neji, not you, Tenten," I snapped back, folding my arms in front of me.

"Listen here," she began, walking towards me.

"Don't tell me what to do," I hissed and my Kekkei Genkai flashed out again in anger. She stopped.

"What's up with your eyes?"

"I don't need to answer you." I stomped off angrily from them and didn't bother trying to hear their comments. I got up near Menma and wrapped my arms around my knees, trying to calm down. I looked up as I heard Menma's flute begin playing and smiled slightly.

"Nice tune," Naruto said as he came up by us.

"Thanks," Menma answered, "I never did thank you for fixing this did I?

"Ah, you don't need to. It wasn't a problem." I looked over at him as he began again.

"What are you doing?" I glared over at Neji as he interrupted Menma. "Don't play another tune, got it?"

"Neji, stop it!" I interrupted, getting to my feet.

"Ani, can't you think clearly? He could be sending a message to the enemy. If you don't remember, we never did catch the guy who infiltrated our village. He could be sending a message to him with that," Tenten interrupted.

"I understand," Menma murmured and I folded my arms in front of me, glaring at them.

"Can't you guys be nice at all...?" I stopped speaking and sniffed the air. "That smell..." Everyone stopped for a moment.

"What do I smell?" Neji asked.

"It smells like burnt wood," I answered when I realized what it was.

"It's this way; let's go check it out," Naruto suggested and we all went to it.

"It looks like there was a huge fire here," Tenten murmured as we began walking and I saw Menma become jumpy as he flashed his gaze around and I could see his nervousness very clearly. Then I noticed the way his eyes kind of glazed over and I knew he was thinking about something. He grabbed hold of his head and groaned.

"Menma, are you alright?" I asked, putting a hand on his arm.

"I'm fine."

"No you're not. Here, take some of this. It'll help." I reached into my bag and pulled out hand made medicine. "You're head's bothering you, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Drink this bottle. It'll make it stop hurting."

"I'm fine, really, I don't need it-"

"Take it now." He nodded and took the drink without another argument. We began moving again and as I stood next to him and Neji, he ran out to Naruto and Tenten and knocked them to the ground just as an arrow went by."Menma! Are all three of you alright?" I asked as I got down beside them, though my gaze flickered up to all the townspeople gathering around us.

"What are you all doing here?" a guy with brown hair asked a bow and arrow in his hand.

"Hey, what are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

"Are you underlings of them?" the man demanded.

"No," Tenten answered, "We're from the Leaf Village, see?" she said, showing her headband.

"We were just passing by," Naruto said, "And we saw here and decided to check it out."

"Well, as you can see, there's nothing at all. You better leave. I can't guarantee your safety." And then he walked off from us. I gaped at him in shock and let the others lead the way to a river.

"I wonder what happened here," Naruto said, grabbing my attention away from what I was thinking about.

At first no one said anything and then Neji spoke out. "I know you're there. You might as well should come out." I looked behind me and saw a woman with long brown hair come out with a girl behind her. When I saw Menma, I swore I saw a spark of reorganization in his eyes and I watched as he got down in front of the girl and held out a flower for her. She coward behind the woman some more.

"You guys are ninja, right?" the woman asked.

"That's right," Naruto said, walking past me, "Did you know that you're talking to Naruto Uzumaki, the best ninja around?"

"No, I didn't." I held in my giggle. The woman got right back down to business. "Please, you must help us. The guy you were talking to earlier, he is my brother."

"Oh, so that jerk's your brother?"

"Naruto! Be nice," I scolded and he looked at me, frowning.

"Please, we need your help." She went into explaining about why her village was attacked, but I barely heard her. I glanced at Menma. Could he have been around here? I bit my lip. Surely he couldn't have been…

"What are you doing here, Ran?" The woman, apparently called Ran, looked over at him.

"Oh, brother."

"Hey, I thought I told you guys to leave," he said, ignoring Ran's comment.

"We're not leaving," I said, getting to my feet, "We're going to help your village-"

"We don't need your help," he interrupted, "follow me." We all looked at each other and I followed after him first, walking past Menma and I glanced at him to see him looking at me, though his eyes flickered away the moment I met them. I blushed and then realized where we were. A graveyard.

"This is all the people you lost, right?"

"Yes. Fuki lost her mother and father during the raid as well and she hasn't spoken a word since."

"So why don't you let us help you!" Naruto yelled at Ran's brother.

"We don't need help from ninja like you!" he snarled.

"Brother, don't yell. You'll frighten Fuki." Ran's brother turned around and patted Fuki on the head.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled like that." He turned to us. "You guys better leave. Now." Then he beckoned over to his sister and the girl and they left.

"Come on," Neji said, "it's time to leave."

"I want to stay to help these villagers," Menma interrupted.

"We can't!" Tenten interrupted, "We don't know when the rogues will be back and we can't just sit around here! We don't have time!"

"That might be the case," Menma argued lightly, "but I have a feeling I might remember something here."

"Don't start that!" Tenten started. "A second ago, you couldn't remember anything!"

"Hey, Tenten," I interrupted her and I walked over to Menma. "The mission is we need to get Menma's memory back and if he says he can find it here-"

"Then, we have to stay," Naruto finished, putting an arm around Menma's shoulders.

"Guys-"

"Come on Ani and Menma, let's start this."

"Okay," I answered brightly and followed after them, glancing at the other two and I stuck my tongue out at Tenten before she completely disappeared from my sight.


	6. Chapter 6

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Six**

"Okay, so what should we do?" I asked as I looked over at the normal part of the village and then glanced at the burnt down part of the village.

"Well, what we could do," Menma said and I was instantly pulled in by his voice, "is we could build a wall that blocked the village with a drawbridge. That would keep the rogues out and the water would act as a mot." He smiled at both of us. "I don't really know how effective this would be, but it would certainly help us protect the village."

"It's a really good idea," I said and smiled. "Let's do that." We went to the trees and Naruto and Menma began cutting it down. We were doing two people cutting the trees at one time so I'd be cutting next. The moment they began moving the tree, I got on the opposite side of Menma and we began pushing the tree to the shoreline of the river. We did this, switching places as we worked and finally, I was cutting up one end of a tree to a sharp point and then we'd be putting it up to start the wall. As all three of us began putting it up, an arrow shot out at us and we stopped for a moment.

"What are you guys doing?" I looked over at the guy.

"We're trying to help you," Menma grunted out, though his voice still sounded amazing.

"I don't need your help."

"Well, we're helping either way," I answered and we all got it up straight.

"Okay, Menma," Naruto said, "let's get this thing put in place." Menma took the hammer and I turned to Ran's brother to see him shaking his head before he left. We continued through this until over night and in the morning, all three of us were exhausted off our feet, but we were still moving. We didn't want to fail these guys.

"O-okay, Menma," Naruto said and I leaned against another part of the wall for a moment, closing my eyes. "Whoa!" My eyes shot open just as I saw Tenten's weapon stop Menma from smashing Naruto's head to mush.

"Are you guys alright?" I asked as I came over.

"We're fine," Naruto answered. "Tenten, what are you still doing here?"

"A 'thank you' would be nice once in a while. Anyway, I'm here to help."

"You are?" I asked, glancing at Menma and my gaze flickered away the moment he caught my eye and then I saw some movement. Fuki walked out to Naruto and held out a bottle.

"Is that for us?" Naruto asked. She gave a nod and put the bottle in his hands before leaving and I saw her go behind Ran.

"We brought these as well," Ran said, holding out a plate of rice balls. "We want to help as well." I smiled widely the moment I heard that; I had a feeling there would be others who'd want to help now.

"Okay, Menma and Ani, I want you two to rest for a moment," Tenten ordered and I frowned at her.

"Who put you in charge? And I'm not that tired."

"She's right," Naruto argued with me, "both of you go rest for a moment."

"You better too, Naruto," Neji said as he walked out as well.

"What-" "

Neji's right, Naruto," I said sarcastically and he glared at me. I smiled at him and stuck my tongue out.

"Fine, we'll rest for a few moments," Naruto muttered and I walked away from the thing to sit on the ground. Well, actually I fell to the ground on my back and closed my eyes to think for a moment. Unfortunately, before I could get anywhere, but at the same time it wasn't unfortunate, I could hear someone get down beside me and I opened my eyes to see who it was; Menma. He hadn't realized I had opened my eyes and so I could look at him without his knowledge. I blushed and looked away as soon as I thought that.

"Today's nice, isn't it, Menma?"

"It is," he answered, looking at me and I nodded, trying not to look so guilty. Neither of us said anything and I sat up so I could look around.

"This plan is going to work nicely, right?" "It'll only work as well as it wants to. We can't control how it goes."

"It better work though. I would be mad at it otherwise." He laughed and I smiled at him, though I hesitated. "Um…can I tell-"

"Let's get back to work I don't like sitting here while everyone else works." He got swiftly back on his feet and began walking off, but I stayed on the ground, staring into space as my shoulders drooped. I sighed finally, but stayed on the ground. "Ani, is everything alright?" Startled, I looked up at Menma and I couldn't bring myself to say what I was going to say earlier.

"Yeah, everything's alright," I answered after a moment of staring into his grey eyes and got to my feet and I put on a fake smile. "Let's get working again." I wouldn't let my emotions get in the way, even if it meant losing him when he remembered everything. Even though I didn't want to lose him, what if he didn't feel the same way? Then I'd have told him for nothing… But then again isn't risk part of getting what you wanted? I shook my head as I helped push a log along the ground and a few more people came to start helping.

I couldn't treat Menma like he was something I need; it wasn't right to do something like that. He was a human just like me and I wouldn't want to be treated like that so I knew he wouldn't like it if he knew how I was thinking about him. I sighed and glanced at him. His eyes met mine and I quickly diverted my gaze away from his so he wouldn't see the blush that stained my cheeks once more. I caught sight of Naruto looking at me and the moment he caught sight of my face, his grin widened. Did he know? My blush deepened in color. He better not because if he did, that would be bad and I knew he would talk to me about it.

"Ani, are you sure nothing's wrong?" Menma asked and I looked up at him from my lunch before nodding.

"I'm sure."

"Were you going to ask me something earlier?" I opened my mouth to speak, but then closed it again, thinking twice about it before shaking my head.

"No, there was nothing I was going to talk about." He smiled at me, almost in a mischievous way. Almost anything he did made him seem better, but at the same time he couldn't get any better. And he was so kind…

"You were going to say something. What was it?" "

I was not," I argued.

"You're lying, Ani. Now spill it." Menma sat down and gave me his full attention, a smile on his face and for a moment I forgot I was supposed to answer him.

"I'm not lying," I said finally.

"Then why did it take so long for you to reply?" I blushed, hating how I felt at the moment since I knew it was obvious.

"I was thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing important," I answered, trying to divert the conversation. "What have you been thinking about? You've been thinking about something. I can see it." It was all a lie, except the few times I had seen some sort of thoughtfulness in his eyes when they glazed over slightly, but he took the lie like bait.

"I-I haven't been."

"Oh, now you're lying."

"Ani, stop trying to change the conversation. What's been on your mind? I want to try to help."

"There's been nothing on my mind. I swear." I felt guilt chewing at my insides and tried to shake off the feeling. I moved my gaze from his and took out my Kekkei Genkai for no particular reason.

"Alright," he said after a moment of silence and began getting up.

"Menma, wait, please," I begged and he looked at me and then nodded, sitting on the ground again. "Thank you," I whispered and looked up at him. "I've just been having my parents on my thoughts a lot. My real parents, I mean. I can't…" I fell silent again and shook my head. "But that hasn't been what's really on my mind. I'm just trying to sort through my feelings right now." I smiled. "Thanks for listening to something so stupid. I don't really understand how people can take me. I'm selfish and useless-" "

You're not, Ani," he interrupted. "You're-"

"Come on, guys!" Naruto called and we both looked at him before standing up.

"Ani, just remember," Menma said as we walked next to each other and I looked at him so he'd continue, "You're very useful and you're the most selfless person I've ever met."

"You don't remember anything."

"I'd remember that. I know that. Just remember I'd never be this far without you and I wouldn't have a friend like you." And then he left me to go help someone with some work. I smiled finally and began working, feeling better about the time now.


	7. Chapter 7

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Seven**

I glanced around and checked around me before I went into the river so I could get some water on my bare skin. I pulled the pins out of my hair and set them on the shore with my clothes before diving into a deep part of the river and resurface, gliding smoothly with the water. I could feel the water washing away the sweat even though I had already been told I couldn't wash my hair and stuff in the water. I was okay with that. I just wanted to go for a swim anyway.

Of course, the moment everything was quiet, I began thinking. I didn't want to think, but for some reason I'd been doing that a lot lately and I didn't like it. Not one bit. It almost annoyed me. Even if a lot of the thoughts were of Menma, but that night I didn't have Menma on my mind. My mind was on my parents. Would I have a dream about them like my other nights? I bit my lip and let myself float on top of the water.

Even if I hadn't known what my parents were like, I had had a small memory of them and it was enough to get my imagination running.

~Start of Memory~

"No! We can't get rid of her!"

"Ani won't be any use in the-"

"She would though. I can't leave her; would you do it with me?"

"We wouldn't even have her if it hadn't been for that mission. I only agreed to let you have her at first and then we were going to get rid of her."

"I won't give up our Ani."

"She isn't mine!"

"You're her father!" I looked up from the toys I had around me and watched as they argued, barely making sense of what they were saying.

"That doesn't mean she's mine!"

"It does though! You aren't getting rid of her."

"The rest of us don't have time to work with her. She has to go!"

"No! She won't leave!"

"Daddy?" I asked, but neither of them heard me over their arguing.

"Then you're leaving with her!"

"Don't ask me that, Nag-"

"Either you stay without her or go with her and leave us. You're choice." My father folded his arms in front of him.

"How can you ask this?" the beautiful blond girl whispered and she glanced at me. "Fine," she whispered finally, "take her away!" She burst out of the room, sobbing and my father came over to me.

"Come here, Ani." I held up my arms and he picked me up. I could see tears in his eyes as he looked at me. "You're going to go away now on a long vacation, alright?"

"But why do I have to, daddy?" I asked.

"It's just because it's not safe here for you, alright?"

"Okay." He hugged me and then he put me down to begin gathering my toys. I helped out and then he picked me up again once more, traveling out of our window without his usual clothes on. I accidently fell asleep in his arms as we went past trees and I was woken up by him again.

"Someone will find you here. Be good."

"I will." He wrapped me up in a cloth and laid me on something, though since I was still half asleep, I didn't register anything. I fell asleep again after he left.

"Child, are you alright?" It seemed like forever when I woke up and when I did, I began crying the moment I didn't see daddy. "It's alright," she began murmuring, picking me up and rocking me.

"Daddy's gone," I cried, "do you know where he is?"

"No, but we'll try to find him." I nodded at the blond girl and she walked inside with me and my stuff and I noticed the blanket I had around me.

~End of Memory~

Tsunade had found me while she had been visiting her grandparents and they agreed to raise me. I bit my lip again. That blanket I had had… it was a lot like the Akatsuki robes Tsunade had told me about and luckily Tsunade couldn't remember that. That was what mattered; she couldn't remember it because I didn't know what she would do to me if I had an idea my parents might be part of the Akatsuki. Maybe Menma would let me come with him… I sighed and went under water again, trying to forget about what I was thinking about. I resurfaced and shook my hair out as I walked over to the shower, wrapping a towel around my body. I dried myself off somewhere away from the river and then got my clothes back on before drying my hair off. It dried easily. I folded my towel up with my old clothes (she had changed into her pajamas) and I went back to the place we were staying at. As I put my clothes in my bag, I caught sight of the ragged blanket with red clouds and black background. I wanted to sleep with it…

"Hey, Ani." I jumped and looked at Naruto.

"Yeah, Naruto?"

"Do you mind sharing with someone again for a bed?"

"She can share with me," Menma suggested as he walked over to us.

"I don't mind," I answered and pulled the baby blanket out, though I kept it hidden from Naruto and I crawled under the covers of the bed after Menma had gotten in. I closed my eyes, nuzzling up with the blanket and darkness took over my mind.

"No! Don't die!" I began sobbing into my pillow, my baby blanket pulled over my shoulders, though the clouds were inside. "Ani, are you alright?" I heard almost everyone ask. I had already woken everyone up. I threw my arms around whatever was closest after I had sat up, the blanket still wrapped around me.

(Menma's Pov)

Ani must not have known she was hugging me as she continued crying. I had no idea what had upset her, but I didn't care. I began trying to comfort her so she'd stop crying while the others came over to see what was wrong, though she wouldn't speak. Finally, her sobs calmed down and all that was happening were tears falling out of her eyes as she quieted down to hiccups.

"I don't think we're going to get anything out of Ani tonight," I said after a while and looked up at the others. "Let her rest. We'll see how she is in the morning." They all nodded and began making their way to their beds again. I looked down at Ani and saw she was asleep. I held her closer to me and she nuzzled up closely when I laid her down and I had gotten down beside her. Her face was etched with pain and sorrow as she continued to sleep. I couldn't fall asleep; I needed to keep watch over her as she slept.

"No, please, you can't!" she cried out in a whisper suddenly and began shaking with fear. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her to me. She soon relaxed in my arms, shaking slightly still though. "Please, don't let him die. Menma…" I looked at her after she had said my name. She had said it so lightly and tenderly and with some sort of passion behind it, but it was something I couldn't place. She was still asleep though so she wasn't conscious of me holding her.

"It's alright, Ani," I whispered, "I'm here and I won't leave you." She nuzzled up closer still and I soon felt her fall into a deep sleep as her dream passed.

(Ani's Pov)

I woke up with a jolt in the morning; my dreams were still clear in my head and I held back a sob. It had been the worst dream yet. First, my real parents had died in a fire and then Menma had appeared in the fire and began withering around in pain as he was engulfed in the flames. I shook my head and realized I couldn't move real well. I looked up and saw Menma's face close to mine as he held me in his arms. He was peacefully asleep. I smiled and put my head back where it had been, hoping I hadn't put his arm asleep. I closed my eyes again and felt Menma move slightly. I opened my eyes and met his dark grey eyes. We gazed at each other without moving and then moved away at the same time. "Are you feeling better than last night?" he asked as I was beginning to get lost in his grey eyes and he gave me a cheeky grin.

"Yes."

"Do you want to talk about it?" I shook my head.

"No, I'm sorry, but I'm not ready to yet."

"That's fine." I got my baby blanket and wrapped it around me, wanting to cry again, but instead I got up and put my stuff away before getting ready. The others soon got up and we were already just as the sun was getting up. We began working right away and others began working with us as well. I was surprised and happy when Ran's brother came and began helping us as well. Almost at the end of the day, I caught sight of a flash of light. Tenten noticed it and we both whistled. That was our sign. People quickly put whatever they were doing down and hid while Tenten, Neji, Naruto, Menma, and I headed to where he was. I wasn't to attack, but I could come with and back up if they needed it. I followed Menma, since he wasn't allowed to attack either, and that's when I saw Ran's brother with an arrow as we followed Neji and Naruto.

"Don't do it!" I was going to call just as he shot out and the arrow missed the guy who had infiltrated our village. He turned around and threw a Kunai with red ribbon at him. I saw Menma move and as I turned to follow him, I saw him get hit with the Kunai. "Menma!" I ran over to him and stumbled, but kept myself up. "Menma, please speak to me." His death flashed through my mind and a sob came out. "Don't die on me."

"Come on; bring him back to the village." I nodded and got Menma on my back. I could feel his breath on my neck as I followed Ran's brother to his place. I laid Menma down where I was told and stepped back, putting a finger in front of my mouth so no one would see my lips trembling and to keep my tears in my eyes. Ran's brother ordered for some stuff, but I didn't hear him. He began cutting Menma's shirt so he could get to Menma's wound and I winced as I saw all the blood. Some tears slipped out of my eyes and I quickly wiped them away. Ran's brother dropped whatever he had in his hands. "There's no way in hell I'm treating this guy."


	8. Chapter 8

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Eight**

"You have to treat him," I argued, stepping closer to Menma.

"There's no way. He was with them. The people who murdered part of my village. I would know that mark anywhere." I looked at the mark again.

"Please, you have to," I begged in a whisper, but he ignored me and stood up.

"I need all of you to leave," he ordered.

"Why would we?" Naruto asked.

"I'm going to finish him off!"

"No, you're not!" I yelled, my voice getting too high.

"Are you guys allies with his group? If not, then you shouldn't have any problems with it!"

"That's right, we aren't, but you see, he has complete Amnesia," Naruto said, "he doesn't remember anything."

"He has Amnesia?" Ran's brother looked back at Menma. "That doesn't matter. I know he was part of it so I'm going to finish him off."

"We will not allow that." I looked over at Neji grateful.

"So you'll protect this murderer?"

"We will not allow you to kill him or harm him until he has his memory back. After that, you can do what you want with him, but until then, we will not have you harming someone who doesn't know what his crime was."

"Speak for yourself, I won't-" Tenten covered Naruto's mouth before he could finish and said something to him before speaking to Ran's brother.

"We could use him as a bargaining chip with his buddies. You almost need him." He seemed thoughtful for a moment as he glared at Menma.

"Fine, I'll stitch up his wound," he muttered finally and asked Naruto to get the stuff from outside. "I'll need you to hold him down." The four of them got onto his arms and legs and so I went up to his head so I could see how he would fair. The moment Ran's brother began stitching up Menma's wound, he woke up and I put a cloth in his mouth so he could bite down on it so he wouldn't scream.

"It's alright, Menma," I told him in a whisper as he began groaning, though it was muffled, "Everything will be fine." I couldn't bear to watch him in pain, but I couldn't look away. I talked to him the whole and when Ran's brother finished, Menma fell unconscious again from the pain. I stayed in front of him, staring at Menma sadly.

"Ani-"

"I'll stay with him for now," I interrupted, looking at them and smiled, "go finish the wall." They all hesitated, but agreed and Neji and Tenten left, but Naruto stayed behind. "What do you need Naruto?"

"Ani, Grandma Tsunade told me. She told me your feelings for him." I looked up at him.

"Yeah, so what?"

"Just don't let them get in the way."

"Sure, you're talking," I muttered and glared at him. "I won't let that happen."

"Okay." Naruto nodded, but still didn't move to leave. "Make sure to keep Menma safe, okay?" he said after a while.

"Of course I will." He left finally and I was alone with Menma. I got to my knees and slowly began to stroke his soft silky hair, tears falling down my face. "Menma, did you know?" I whispered, but I got no answer. I nodded and fell against a wall, beginning to feel as if I had already lost him. "I'll protect you no matter what," I whispered, "I'll even become a rogue ninja with you. I don't care, but I'll make sure you're safe." I began running my fingers through his hair once more.

"I can't believe it," Naruto whispered as we all sat around Menma, "I can't believe he's as evil as everyone says he is."

"Maybe the Amnesia just made him seem nice," Tenten suggested. "No! I know he doesn't know anything about it and if someone was truly a murderer, even Amnesia wouldn't make them seem nice," I snapped back, raising my head from my position. I had had my head resting on my knees with my arms wrapped around my legs, staring at Menma as I waited for him to wake up.

"Ani, are you sure there's nothing wrong?" Tenten asked. "Yes," I snapped again and glared at her.

"Then why are you being so defensive?"

"Because! How would you like if you were unconscious and we were debating whether or not you were a murderer! HOW WOULD YOU LIKE IT?"

"Ani, calm down," Neji interrupted.

"I-I'm one of the bandits, aren't I?"

"Hey, you're awake," Naruto said, turning his attention to Menma and I looked at him, sitting normally now.

"How are you feeling?" I asked and Menma began struggling to get up. "No, you need to stay down," I ordered lightly, placing a hand on his back away from his wound and he hesitantly nodded and stopped. "And about the bandit thing, it's only a theory at this point. Nothing's being accused until you have your memory back." He nodded again and no one said anything any more after Neji had said he was leaving. Slowly, everyone began drifting off to sleep and I was the last one awake, my eyelids getting heavy from the silence. I must have dozed for a second and when I opened my eyes, I got a surprise. Menma was gone! I stumbled to my feet and ran out of the hut house thing, trying with all my being sense his presence anywhere.

"I did it."

"Menma?" I heard a rock hit the ground and I looked over by the wall. I should've guessed he would've been here from the beginning.

"You heard didn't you Fuki?" Menma asked and I saw the small girl with a rock in her hand. She threw it at him and Menma got onto the ground so he could get hit.

"Stop it!" I cried, running out to stand in front of him.

"Ani, just go away," Menma murmured, "I deserve this."

"No you don't! Don't argue with me."

"Ani, Menma!"

"Naruto," I looked over at him and he stood beside me.

"So you guys are going to protect this murderer?"

"Listen everyone! Menma doesn't know anything. He has Amnesia!"

"We don't care what he has! He's going to die! And if you protect him then you're just as much to blame."

"Naruto, Ani, what is he doing out here." Tenten came over as well.

"He got out. I didn't know he'd be able to walk yet," Naruto said.

"Dammit," Neji muttered. I was lost into what they were saying until rocks were thrown at us again, but I just stayed still. Did Menma really want to die?

"All of you just go," Menma said.

"You'll get killed," Neji argued.

"If I must."

"Menma, that's not going to happen," I snapped back, turning to him when I heard the arrows falling from the sky. I pulled out the only Kunai knife I had and hit the arrows, though one went through my leg. "Damn it!" I cursed, grabbing hold of the arrow and pulling it out. I winced and threw it away.

"The drawbridge; we need to pull it up," Menma said as we did just as I got a glimpse of the ninja coming at us. One got through, but we stopped him easily.

"All of you go hide!" Everyone did, forgetting about the whole Menma incident. Neji turned to Menma, "You better go with them. You too, Ani."

"I'm fine. I might not look like it, but I have had ninja training. I'm Chunin level."

"Okay, fine," Neji snapped, "but Menma you have to go."

"Alright."


	9. Chapter 9

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Nine**

"I can't move." Nervously, I brought my Kekkei Genkai out, hoping I wouldn't have to use it.

"We're trapped in a Genjutsu," Neji and I said together.

"You're too late!" I looked over at the guy who had said that and glared at him as he got his flute to play a musical tune while other people appeared by him with throwing stars and Kunais in their hands. I heard Menma's flute over the others and could feel the Genjutsu release on my body. I stopped the weapons that came at me and attacked the nearest guy while Naruto went after the guy with the flute with his shadow clones. I knocked the guy unconscious and tied him up so he wouldn't be able to move when he woke up. I caught sight of Menma over a little ways as he knocked a guy who had gone to harm Fuki.

"Look out behind you!" Startled to hear Fuki talking, I ran over to them just as Menma sent Fuki away and I saw him in pain.

"Menma, are you alright?" I asked, getting down beside him.

"I'm fine."

"That's good," Naruto answered as he came over by us. Don't worry, we stopped them all."

"But what about the leader? What about Shiin?"

"Well, he got away."

"That's not good! There's a dam not far from here that's filled with water. Even in a drought, this village would have enough water. Shiin's planning to blow up the dam and flood the village."

"But what about all these people?" I asked, not registering what he was saying.

"He doesn't care. He just wants the mine to be in tact."

"To stop a flood that big, we'd have to move some mountains," Naruto mumbled.

"Move some mountains… that's it! Naruto and Ani, you have to take me to the mines. I'll set off some paper bombs and we should be able to stop the flood that way."

"Good idea!" Naruto agreed and he got Menma on his back. I followed after them, though I had the searing pain shooting through my leg from that arrow. I looked at Menma and saw his face.

"Menma, what's wrong?" I asked and he looked at me.

"I-I need to tell you something."

"Can't it wait until later?" Naruto asked.

"No this is something I have to get off of my chest. I-I remember everything of my life before."

"That's great," Naruto said.

"When I was really young, my parents were killed and Shiin's clan took me in. Their clan was relatively small, but powerful. Their clan was hired to do many things by the government, but soon came another village. The Hidden Sound Village."

"Shiin lost quite a few men to the village and as the time passed by; his clan was no longer hired to do things since his clan had grown so small. That's when they put their sights on this mine. We were just planning to scare the villagers away, but it didn't quite go as planned. They ended up having to kill people off. I couldn't do it, I tried to escape, but I couldn't get away. When I was falling to the river, I was sure I was going to die. At least that way it would've been a just ending, but I didn't die. And so I wanted to forget all that happened, I couldn't stand the thought of all the people there dying and being killed so like a coward, I used a Jutsu passed down through the clan that erases ones memory. The Jutsu didn't work though. My vile memory came flooding back only after a few hours."

"Wait," Naruto growled, stopping by the mine, "are you telling me you could remember everything from the beginning?"

"Yes, I could," Menma answered shamefully. Naruto growled.

"Get off of me!"

"Naruto be careful," I cried, walking over to Menma.

"Don't you get it, I had to tell you those lies," Menma said to Naruto, since he could see I wasn't going to get upset at him about it, "I couldn't let the shame of my clan be known. I had to get the help from the Leaf Village Ninja to help this village. I had to pretend to not remember anything so I could turn a page over and help the village." Menma slowly got to his feet and smiled a cheeky smile at Naruto and me. "This is my purpose now. To help these people. And thanks to you and Ani, I've gained some meaning in my life now." Menma reached into his pocket and pulled out his Ocarina, handing it to Naruto.

"Menma, why are you giving this to me?"

"Because this is good-bye. Someone has to go blow up those paper bombs. This is my purpose and I have you to thank for this."

"No, Menma! You can't do this!" I cried, tears welling up in my eyes as he walked over to me after knocking Naruto off the cliffs.

"Ani, I have something else to thank you for."

"Don't do this please!"

"I have to. This is my purpose." He gently took my face in his hands and pressed his soft lips against mine. I kissed him back without question and slowly began moving my mouth against his as tears fell down my face. "Thank you, Ani," he whispered after he had pulled away, "for loving me. Even as the vile person I am."

"No, you're not," I whispered back and then began crying as he walked me over to the edge. "Menma, please, don't do this!"

"I have to Ani." He had hold of my arms over the edge and I had a grip on his forearms.

"No, please, you can't! I won't be able to handle of you dying!" He let go of my arms. "No…!" I fell and let out a cry as I plummeted down to the trees.

"Ani!" I felt Naruto get hold of me and helped me up on the branch. There was a shake in the earth and I looked up at the place where Menma would be.

Menma walked into the mine slowly, the pain in his back hurting him again and then did the sign that would put the paper bombs on fire. "Thank you, Naruto, my friend." He smiled just as the paper bombs started off. "Ani…"


	10. Chapter 10

**No, Please, You Can't!**

**Chapter Ten**

They say you'll never know what true love is, but I do. The one person I was actually with, I had only been with him a few days, but I knew everything I needed to about him. He might have knew only a moment how I felt, but I knew then that I loved him and I knew I always would even if I was only fourteen. I wouldn't be able to find another person to love. I just couldn't believe he was gone. Naruto and I had both finished off Shiin for Menma the moment the mine had blown up. Naruto had called out Menma's name in anguish and I began sobbing, but I managed to get it together enough to fight Shiin with Naruto. I was going to avenge Menma. I did. I got to attack him with Naruto with the Rasengan and then we took Shiin back to the village.

"I owe an apology to him," Ran's brother murmured as we stood in a circle in their village.

"Thank you, mister," Fuki whispered and I looked over at the cliffs with determination, though I was still crying.

"Naruto," I whispered as I walked over to him, "I'm not going back to the Leaf Village yet. I-I want to find Menma's body or at least as much as I can of it and bury it properly."

"I understand Ani and… I think you deserve this." I took the Ocarina and looked at it, my bottom lip beginning to quiver.

"Thank you."

"Go find him… Did you tell him? How you felt?"

"Yes and he felt the same way back," I murmured and a sob came out. "I'll see you later, Naruto. Tell Tsunade I'll be back in a week, maybe longer."

"Okay." I said good-bye to the three of them and after they had left, I got my stuff and headed up to what was left of the mine. Once there, I began collecting rocks to build the rock shelter. I piled up the first row of rocks, then infused my Chakra with them to keep them in place by the mountain side they were connected to. As I built it higher and higher, I had to get more rocks and that's when I found it. I gasped out and stumbled back as I found the charred body and wanted to cry, but all I could do was puke.

"Menma, don't worry," I murmured as I put some stuff around him so I could find him later. I went and finished the shelter before walking out of it.

I walked slowly over to his body and did a few signs, my Rinnegan coming out, and then I placed a glowing hand of Menma's charred skin. I closed my eyes and let my Jutsu do what it would. It felt like forever before I felt skin under my finger tips and I opened my eyes to see Menma slowly turning back to normal. I smiled and began crying in happiness, but it didn't distract my concentration. Within a few hours, he was back to normal with warm flesh again. He let out a small groan, but stayed unconscious so I put him on my back and took him back to the shelter. I laid him down on a clean bed face down so I could clean his wound since there was a bunch of gunk in it from the dirt and stuff that had gotten in from the explosion. Once his wound was cleaned out, I covered him up with a blanket and I started a fire, hoping he wouldn't start a fever.

I ran a finger through Menma's hair as I sat by him, hoping he'd wake up soon. I glanced over at the fire to see if the broth was done and it was so I pulled it off from the fire. I put Menma over on his back so I could feed him and rested his head on my lap so I could begin feeding him and wouldn't have to worry about him choking. He ate it all and then I gave him a little water before laying his head back down. I heard some movement as I was gathering all the dirty dishes up and I looked over to see Menma struggling to sit up. "Menma, don't move!" Startled, he looked over at me.

"Ani? H-how am I here? I remember that blast and..." He fell silent, not sure how to finish.

"I brought you back with my Kekkei Genkai. I hope you're not mad at me, but well, I couldn't let you stay dead."

"I'm not mad," he said finally, "I'm just surprised I'm still alive. Are... are you mad at me?"

"Of course not! Why would I be?"

"For lying to you? Throwing you off a cliff so I could kill myself? I have a list of reasons going on."

"Well, don't think that!" I went over to him and laid down next to him. "When do you want to go back to the Leaf Village? Naruto misses you."

"As soon as I can walk."

"I can turn you invisible so Tsunade wouldn't know you were there right away. Let's get you to bed, it'll be bad if your awake. You need to rest."

"Will you lay with me?" I nodded and scooted closer to him. He rolled onto his side and pulled me up to his chest. "Do you mind?"

"Of course not." We fell silent and I looked up at him. "Menma... did you just tell me that you liked me just because you knew I liked you?"

"No! I mean, I didn't even know you felt the same way. I was going to tell you, but then you mentioned you had to sort out your feelings that day and I couldn't after that. I decided to tell you, preparing you to reject me completely, but you didn't. It was one of the happiest moments in my life and nothing will ever compare to it again." "Menma, I love you and nothing's going to change that either," I murmured, feeling sleepy and I heard him make an agreeing noise, but he was falling asleep too and then we both were asleep. Over the next couple days, I helped Menme regain his strength back and then on day three, he told me we should head back to the Leaf Village so he could apologize for what happened. "Are you sure?" I asked as I gave him his soup after he had sat up.

"Yes, I'm sure of it. We need to get back to the Leaf Village. Plus, we have a promise to keep to Naruto."

"Promise?" I questioned.

"Yes. We promised him we'd eat that Ramen with him, right?" I smiled.

"Yes, we did. Come on, then. Let's get this all set up and we can go." I let him eat and then gathered everything up. We walked for a few moments before I noticed Menma growing weak from exhaustion. "Okay, get on my back. Don't argue, I can see you're getting tired." He didn't and by the next day I was back at the Leaf Village. I had Menma invisible when I was greeted and then I went to Tsunade's place right away. Menma was walking silently beside me.

"Ani, how are you?" Tsunade asked as she walked over to me and I let her hug me.

"I'm fine," I murmured.

"Do you want to stay in the village?"

"Yes," I answered quickly.

"I have a house for you so you can stay. Come on, I'll show you there and then everything's up to you afterwards."

"Can I become a Shinobi here?"

"Sure." We walked in silence to the house I was getting and then I was left alone to change it up myself. I made Menma visible again.

"How are you feeling?" I asked him as I laid him down on my bed.

"I'm just a little tired," he answered, "Ask Naruto when he's going to have that Ramen. I want to talk to him then."

"Alright." I smiled at him and he fell asleep. I got a blanket put over him and then laid down myself on my couch after locking up the house.

Three days later, I was running through the trees with Menma behind me, trying to find Naruto, with my fingers intertwined with Menma's. He slowed down and I did as well when I spotted Naruto. "Hey, Naruto! Do you mind if we join you!" Startled, Naruto looked up and then dropped the chopsticks he had had in his hand and his mouth hung open as Menma and I walked out in the clearing.

"What? What's going on? Menma, what are you doing here?"

"Ani! What is the meaning of this?" I swallowed as Tsunade burst out from her hiding and I could see her anger. "YOU USED YOUR KEKKEI GENKAI DIDN'T YOU?"

"Don't hurt me, please!"

"YOU HAVE A HELL LOAD OF EXPLAINING FOR ME!"

"Can we eat first?" I asked, cowering slightly.

"FINE!" We sat down together and as I began eating with Menma, I answered questions for Tsunade and Naruto. I explained also about my theory about my parents being in the Akatsuki and was happy when I wasn't told I was going to be murdered. We all lived happily together after that.


End file.
